1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the treatment of sewage. More particularly, the present invention relates to the field of prior art dealing with the purification of housing and industrial liquid sewage containing biologically degradable solid waste material and the disposal of the purified sewage.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The situation of housing and industrial waste or sewage disposal has always been a continuous and increasing problem. This is due to our rapidly expanding population and resulting industrial output to accommodate the consumption demand imposed by this growth. Inevitably, compromises have been resorted to in order to provide for the basic needs of the population. Such compromises, particularly in the area of sewage disposal, have exacted their toll from the delicate ecological balance of nature. With each large urban area desperately attempting to dispose of thousands of tons of solid and millions of gallons of liquid sewage every day, it is apparent why large land disposal areas as well as rivers and streams adjacent such cities are presently polluted and deemed unsafe.
The basic prior art sewage treatment system normally involves conducting raw sewage from a population area through long conduits to a place that is distant from this area. This place is basically the sewage treatment facility wherein the sewage is placed within large open containers in order to encourage the proliferation of aerobic bacteria for the digestion of the sewage by converting organic material contained therein into simpler chemical compounds. This conversion is effected through the action of enzymes produced by the living organisms. However, as this process continues, odoriferous gases contained in the sewage are formed by decomposition. Therefore, both the odor and unsightly appearance of such sewage treatment facilities have greatly limited their location and applicability, particularly with respect to densely populated urban areas. This problem obviously increases with population growth since remote areas of sewage treatment facilities become less available. In order to accommodate this situation, great expense must normally be resorted to in order that the sewage can effectively be disposed of while still maintaining a balance between the needs of nature as well as those of the population.
The prior art is replete with various forms of sewage treatment and disposal systems. Some are quite simple, being based generally upon the cesspool principle wherein sewage is caused to freely drain into and distribute within the ground. Other, more involved systems, propose a combination of chemical and physical treatment prior to disposing of the treated sewage. Still more complicated systems necessitate the use of large scale facilities for subjecting the sewage to multiple stages of treatment above ground level prior to the disposal of the treated sewage into the natural waterways.
Because of various factors, including cost of construction, output capacity, complexity of operation and adaptation to populated areas, prior art sewage treatment and disposal systems have not heretofore satisfactorily met the many demands and needs of both housing and industry.